The Executioner and Her Way of Life, Vol. 5: The Promised Land

Invading the Holy Land

It was raining.

The sun was beginning to peek over the horizon. Faint golden shafts pierced the clouds, which wept on the earth below. The precipitation and morning fog muddied visibility, yet a soaked priestess trudged through the unwelcoming weather regardless.

The robes under her raincoat were white, indicating she was an aide to an official priestess. Many of her kind roamed the continent like this, combining pilgrimage and training in one. Since her face was covered by the hood to keep water off, it would’ve been difficult to identify her if she were wearing ordinary priestess robes.

However, hers had been altered quite significantly from the standard design.

The skirt that would typically have concealed her legs was hiked to halfway up her thighs and lined with adorable frills. Black tights covered the skin beneath the hem of her robes. There was only one member of the Faust in all the continent who dressed like this.

It was Momo, assistant Executioner and shamelessly self-declared faithful servant to Menou.

“…This rain is downright awful.”

She glanced up with a round face that was true to her age of fourteen, gazing at the dark clouds.

She’d had misgivings about the ominous weather since last night, but of course the more one hoped to be wrong about a premonition, the more often it was correct. Before dawn, the heavy clouds had already darkened from white to near black, loosing their accumulated water.

Rain was a serious trial for anyone traveling on foot.

Unlike a town with cobbled roads, the unpaved ground became sticky mud that clung to your feet. Precipitation drenched your clothes and mercilessly leeched the warmth from your body. The constant din made it difficult to tell if anyone was approaching. Failed adventurers turned thieves, monsters, conjured soldiers… There were many potential dangers in the area, and the curtain of rain concealed them all.

An excursion in such inclement conditions was infinitely more difficult than on a clear day.

No traveler who dared enter the undeveloped Wild Frontier would underestimate rain’s dangers.

Most would be reluctant or even delay their departure, but Momo considered the storm a blessing.

The constant sound was perfect for hiding her presence. Since she was trying to stay undercover, this was both a blessing and a curse.

Momo had finished her preparations and set out from the pilgrimage inn as soon as the rain had started.

She had very good reason to both be in a hurry and keep wary of being sighted.

Ever since she’d decided to act separately from Menou and departed from the mountain hot springs town to travel toward the holy land alone, a terrible stalker had been following her.

“…Tch!”

Just picturing the person who was chasing her was enough to elicit a nasty sound that didn’t suit Momo’s adorable face.

Since there were no knights to punish crimes in the uninhabited Wild Frontier, all kinds of illicit activity was conducted here. Kidnapping, sales of prohibited items, research into forbidden conjurings… Anything that was forbidden in the civilized nations was bound to be widespread in the Wild Frontier.

But even most hardened criminals who dealt in taboos would refrain from messing with a priestess of the Faust. If anything, they would go out of their way to avoid someone with the right to arrest them for their transgressions. Unfortunately, there was an exception to every rule.

The person tailing Momo was one such irregularity.

“Really, what a little…!” Momo muttered with irritation. Reminding herself that even thinking about that person was bad for her health, she shook her head, chasing the image away.

She’d left in the middle of the night during a storm in an effort to ditch her pursuer, yet her sharp instincts informed her she was being followed. Evidently, the rain wasn’t enough to deter the stalker, and they were tough enough that the weather didn’t slow them.

At this rate, Momo would be overtaken. Upon realizing this, the assistant Executioner began to scheme up more violent solutions.

She quickly looked over her shoulder.

Her steps left deep and obvious prints in the muddy earth. With no other travelers around because of the weather and unusual time, her tracks were all the more obvious. Undoubtedly, her shadow was following these tracks.

Still, all she had to do was outwit her opponent. Carefully, Momo began to walk backward, matching her own footsteps perfectly. About fifteen steps back, there was a tree on the side of the road that would fend off the rain quite nicely.

“Yes, that ought to do it.”

Momo reached into the frills of her skirt and retrieved a hidden coping saw. It was a weapon engraved with a crest that could invoke a conjuring.

Snapping the wirelike saw like a whip, she lashed it around one of the tree’s branches. A few tugs confirmed it would support her weight, and once she felt certain, Momo carefully lifted herself up. Then she used her arm strength to climb onto the branch.

Along the way, she paused to look down. Not a step out of place. Perfect.

“…Mm-hmm, I’ve outdone myself yet again.”

Momo peered down from her spot in the tree.

The only footprints in sight were her own. Since she’d walked backward along her own tracks, her trail now appeared to end abruptly.

This was a diversionary tactic. Even wild animals utilized this simple backtracking technique, but that was because it was effective. Momo had been careful not to disturb the impressions when she leaped to the branch, too, so it would be challenging to see through the deception.

In theory, she could leave and take another route now, but Momo elected to stay hidden.

She would wait for the brief moment when her stalker paused in confusion at the abrupt end of the footprints and use that opportunity to strike.

Merely hiding from her pursuer wouldn’t fix the problem. The only solution was to finish them off for good.

Momo silently honed her murderous intent. She wasn’t foolish enough to let her target sense her bloodlust. Instead, she narrowed her presence until it was finer than thread and keener than a knife.

After a short time, her follower came into view. The dark of the early morning and the rain disguised everything but the vaguest outline, but that tall figure was unmistakable.

They were walking without looking up, eyes focused on Momo’s footprints. It was as if the idea of stealth had never occurred to this particular stalker.

Momo’s tension heightened as the person came into view. She took care that even the faint sound of her breathing was lost in the rain. Her pursuer was a skilled hunter. The slightest move could give her away.

The stalker walked under the tree where Momo was hiding, then stopped.

“Aha.”

Suddenly, the person pulled their gaze away from the ground and looked up.

“Found you, Momo.”

Although the confident voice possessed a masculine edge, the speaker was undoubtedly a woman. She drew her broadsword, an advanced Guiding vessel engraved with crests, from her belt. Then, without hesitation, she drove it into the earth and charged it with Guiding Force.

Guiding Force: Connect—Royal Sword, Crest—Invoke [Flameburst]

The crest conjuring sent an explosion through the ground.

She had likely kept the power to a minimum, but its effects were far from small. Mud flew in all directions. On top of that, the conjuring seemed to have been imbued with directionality, as it all flew toward the tree Momo was perched in.

SPLOOSH!
Mud drenched the assistant Executioner’s entire body.

“Was that really the best you could do? Sure, you matched your footprints, but the ones you stepped in twice are obviously deeper. I expected better from you, Momo.”

Naturally, Momo was less than thrilled to be both scolded and covered in mud. She wiped her face as she practically spat her response. “…Oh, you’re the worst.”

She’d hoped the rain would cover the signs that she had backtracked. The fact that anyone could tell the difference in this darkness was nothing short of insane anyway.

There was no point to hiding anymore. Infuriated and dirty, Momo jumped from the tree and cast a hateful glare at the one who’d caught her.

At a glance, it was obvious this woman was a heroine.

She was unusually tall, with intimidating good looks and an overpowering aura that made her loom all the larger. As a young woman in the latter half of her teens, she possessed a youthful vigor that made a strong impression upon any who saw her. This was amplified by her revealing dress that covered only the most critical areas of her body, yet somehow, she wore it so well that it didn’t come across as indecent.

Ashuna Grisarika.

Momo had first met her in the great Grisarika Kingdom to the east, and the princess had tailed her all the way to the holy land in the distant west. The rain had done little to mute her fierce golden hair, and her sky-blue eyes glinted as they fixed themselves upon Momo.

The assistant Executioner jabbed a white-gloved finger at Ashuna.

“What are you going to do about this, hmmm? I got all muddy thanks to you, Princess-poo…”

“Sorry about that. I’ll make it up to you at some point. You’ll just have to stick with me for a long time to make sure I can.”

“…No thank yooou. I’ll overlook it if you promise not to bother me, okaaay?”

“Come now, there’s no need to be shy, Momo.”

The last thing Momo wanted was to have Ashuna indebted to her, providing an excuse for them to be bound to each other. Unfortunately, Ashuna was persistent. She obviously knew that Momo wanted nothing to do with her, but she deliberately misconstrued the other girl’s words, steering the conversation to best suit her—all very typical Ashuna.

“Why are you following me in the first place, Princess-poo?”

“Following you? I’m hurt, Momo. Where are you going, hmm?”

“…The holy land.”

“Right? As it happens, so am I.”

Ashuna put a hand to her heart, declaring this nothing more than a coincidence.

“Any traveler who comes to the western part of the continent is bound to visit the holy land. In fact, that’s what brings most people to this region in the first place. There’s nothing unusual about the fact that we share a common, and quite famous, destination. So why act as though one of us is pursuing the other?”

Her eyes glittered mischievously as she rattled off some hard-to-deny logic.

“But incidentally, if I
were
following you, it would likely be because you’re just so damn fun to chase.”

“Well, how grand that you’ve caught up to me now, then. I’m going to wait out the rain here for a while, so please do feel free to go on ahead without me.”

“Oh, don’t be like that. Everyone needs a travel buddy, right?”

Momo’s coldness had no visible effect on Ashuna’s easygoing attitude. Her smile shone as if bathed in sunlight, despite the pouring rain.

“Anyway, all joking aside. Did you really think you could do something this interesting without the great Ashuna Grisarika getting involved?”

The princess’s incredible charisma was enough to bend most to her will, yet Momo’s dull expression remained unmoved.

There was nothing even remotely high-class or noble about Ashuna’s statement; it was an unbelievably bald-faced declaration of intention to keep annoying her. Momo told herself it was her own fault for failing to shake the princess off, resigning herself to the predicament as best she could.

“I don’t even care anymore… I’m sure even a super-princess pain in the butt like yourself can at least serve as a decoy if it comes to that. I’ll allow you to stay by my side, if only as a meat shield.”

“Great, you can count on me as your rearguard.”

Tossing back her red-tinged blond hair, Ashuna puffed up her chest in a show of dependability.

“I’ll break through fleeing enemy lines and cut off their general’s head, just for you.”

Momo could only sigh at Ashuna’s unflinching response.

The holy land was at the westernmost edge of human-inhabited land.

It did not rest on the coast, but all that lay beyond was a barren stretch of the Wild Frontier. The biggest reason was that the earthen vein, so essential to maintaining civilization, both began and ended here, its first and last stop.

Earthen vein
was a term for the Guiding Force that flowed freely all through the ground of the continent.

Its power was too strong for a single individual to handle, but the energy it provided was essential to running a highly populated city. The earthen vein was the source that maintained the utilities that provided light at night, the Guiding trains that traveled to and fro, and countless other necessities. In the civilized nations, settlements were always built in places blessed by the earthen vein, and there were constant experiments to utilize the abundant Guiding Force in new and effective ways.

The holy land was situated where the earthen vein ended, in the westernmost corner of civilization on the continent.

After leaving the nearest countries, it took a three-day march through the Wild Frontier to reach the holy land. This was the most basic route for any pilgrim.

The path of bare earth was just wide enough for two people to walk side by side, surrounded by grassy meadows. Despite being the final leg of the pilgrimage, it wasn’t maintained.

Normally, local governments managed the roads linking one town to another to keep commerce running smoothly, but this was not so in the holy land.

Here, the route only existed because people walked it.

Just as wild animals in the mountains could form game trails, the pilgrimage path was formed by the passage of countless believers moving in the same direction.

Ten years, a hundred, a thousand…

The footprints of the unknown faithful who flocked to the holy land on foot overlapped each other, wore down the earth, pushed aside the plants, and eventually formed a road.

No one had spread gravel across the ground to make it easier to walk, nor did anyone deliberately develop the trail. The way was so primitive and naturally formed that if people were to stop walking it, it would surely vanish after a few seasons.

The last section of the pilgrimage was nothing more special than a walk shared by many.

“I heard what happened from Menou. Your ‘Master Flare’ took a train to the holy land, right? Wouldn’t it be easier to follow the tracks to get there?”

“The traaain?”

A pious believer was meant to walk this route on their own two feet, every step filled with faith and emotion. Meanwhile, the pair who seemed to have abandoned their faith were having a heretical conversation over whether there might be an easier way.

“It’s an awfully strange train, that one. It’s impossible to find the tracks, no matter where you look.”

The holy land was encircled by the Wild Frontier, land that didn’t belong to any nation. It was named precisely because it could not be tamed. Were there a railroad cutting through it, villages might form along the way after some time.

“Back in the monastery, when we first heard the rumor that there was a train track that went to the holy land, my darling and I searched all over yet turned up nothing. So how can there still be a train that goes directly to the holy land? It doesn’t make sense.”

“Maybe it’s in an underground tunnel. The holy land is famous as the place where the biggest earthen vein in the continent connects, right? It stands to reason that this region would also have more advanced marvels, right?”

It was easy to walk along a railroad, if not quite as easy as a paved road. Typically, there was a path running parallel to the track anyway. A Guiding train track always followed the earthen vein from above. Since the holy land was the central point of the earthen vein that ran all throughout the continent, it stood to reason that there would be a Guiding train system constructed there. However, Ashuna’s suggestion questioned whether the train Menou claimed she saw was even real.

Momo shrugged. “Who knows? The official stance is that they haven’t developed the land because it’s sacred, but there might be more to the story. We didn’t exactly have time to go around digging holes in the holy land at random, so I have no idea.”

The pair continued walking. Their stamina was far higher than an average person’s because of their exceptional amounts of natural Guiding Force. The early morning rain died down, and the afternoon sun began to peek through gaps in the clouds. Eventually, there was a change in the endless stretches of undeveloped wasteland around them.

Fields that had clearly been tilled by human hands came into view, a common sight outside many cities.

If there was any difference from normal plots, it was that the workers were not members of the third caste, the Commons, but women in nuns’ habits. When they saw Momo’s white priestess robes, they stopped their work to greet her with a nod.

This land had been cultivated so that the people of the monastery could earn their daily bread. Ashuna observed with fascination, the scene unusual precisely because it was so much like any regular populated area.

“Now, there’s a surprisingly ordinary sight. It’s moving to think you once dirtied your hands with fieldwork, too, Momo.”

“What kind of remark is that…? Our abbey was near a cemetery, so I certainly spent plenty of time polishing gravestones. It was a nice little break from the horrid training they were always putting us through.

“Master Flare was the director of the monastery that looked after the Faust cemetery, at least in theory. It was really just an empty title, but it still suited our Master far more than a life-giving place like a farm.”

“Hmm, is that right? Wait, so is the place where you and Menou grew up nearby?”

“Not at all. Our old home is all the way on the other side of the holy land.”

The pair had been raised at a secret Executioner training site. In an effort to keep away prying eyes, it was built in a location where one had to pass through the holy land in order to get in or out.

Momo and Ashuna stopped walking after making it halfway through the farmland.

A beautiful town that looked very out of place in this remote region had come into sight.

It was the ultimate destination of every road on the continent. The beginning of all paths, as well as the end. The source point of the abundant Guiding Force that flowed in the earthen vein.

The holy land.

There were no walls around this unnamed settlement. They were not required, for though it was in the Wild Frontier, none dared attack it. Or perhaps those who lived here simply devoutly trusted that there was no need to fear an incursion.

Thus, the entrance to the village was a plaza for welcoming in pilgrims.

Surrounded by columns, the open court was a beautiful circle that turned none away. The main road that ran through the front half of the town led to a massive cathedral that was obviously the community’s heart. The entrance to the cathedral was in the center of the circular plaza, with towers on either side allowing pilgrims to enter.

Multiple churches lined the streets. There wasn’t a single building that appeared to be a private home. Every structure was a church facility for priestesses of the Faust, and each was a brilliant white.

The little settlement, only about five hundred meters around, was made up entirely of beautiful and perfectly calculated religious architecture.

“That’s it, huh?”

“It is indeed.”

Momo nodded to Ashuna.

It was a stunning alabaster village, worthy of being the destination of believers all over the world. Its holiness was palpable at a glance, its purity more evident with every passing moment of admiration.

But what was most impressive of all, what truly left all observers at a loss for words, was that all the buildings…were made of Guiding Force.

“…”

Ashuna squinted at the glow of Guiding Light.

Everyone who came to the holy land inevitably stopped here when they first arrived. They were moved by the beauty, struck by a sense of accomplishment, awed by the sacred streets. That was why the road was slightly wider here. Momo and Ashuna were no exception, joining the lines of pilgrims marveling at the holy land.

From the cobblestones that formed the foundation of the town to the row of church facilities and the symbolic circular plaza at the center, everything was composed of conjurings glowing in phosphorescent light.

Such was the glory of what was said to be the only surviving village from the ancient civilization that fell to ruin a thousand years ago, and the beginning of all modern Guiding Force culture.

Its population totaled roughly one thousand.

All officially registered residents were priestesses of the Faust.

Aside from the believers who visited on their pilgrimages, there weren’t even any members of the Noblesse, let alone the Commons.

This was the holy land, which had no other name, for there was no other hallowed ground like it.

It was clearly a sacred place: small enough to be charming, clean enough to be utterly pure. Any devout believer would easily be moved to tears and fall to their knees at the sight, but Ashuna stood there coolly with her arms crossed and grunted.

“Looks kinda familiar.”

“Pardon? You realize it’s the ‘holy land’ because there’s no other place like it, right?”

This was presumably Ashuna’s first time visiting. And surely there was nowhere else in the world that resembled a settlement formed of Guiding Force.

Momo looked at Ashuna doubtfully, but the princess continued with confidence. “No, I’m sure of it. That area there looks a lot like the conjuring Menou made in Libelle.”

Menou had invoked a church-style conjured barrier in order to seal Pandæmonium again.

The scale was different, but a part of the town did indeed bear a strong resemblance to the scripture conjuring Menou had used.

“Ahh.” Momo, who was being treated for poison at the time of that battle, nodded. “That’s right, my darling can produce church barriers on her own if she uses Guiding Force from the earthen vein. Though it’s a bit too flashy to employ very often… You got to see it, Princess-poo?”

“Indeed I did. That fight truly set my heart aflame.”

Ashuna closed her eyes, reminiscing. Her warm, satisfied sigh came out strangely sensual.

“Throw in Pandæmonium’s unique abilities, and it was one of the most memorable mortal struggles I’ve ever experienced. I even helped pull up the earthen vein to take down an enemy who could revive herself. It was a conjuring for the ages.”

“You’ll have to tell me more about my darling’s heroic escapades later… I suppose you’re right about there being a similarity. The holy land is a sort of barrier conjuring as well, even if its construction is quite different from what you saw Menou do.”

Menou’s construct was more minuscule than the one in the holy land.

The cathedral at the town’s center served as a starting point for the conjuring that was the foundation of the entire glowing white village.

Now that she had seen the real thing for the first time, Ashuna hummed. “So basically, the holy land maintains itself with power from the biggest earthen vein in the continent, making a huge, high-quality barrier city. Am I right?”

“Yes, something along those lines.”

The buildings in the holy land were far sturdier than any ordinary stone edifices. Momo was unmoved despite being a low-ranking priestess, while Ashuna’s general lack of faith meant she was more curious than awestruck.

Ashuna put a hand on the hilt of her broadsword in response to Momo’s dismissive assessment.

“A barrier that sturdy is just begging to be broken. I’d love to try cutting it down someday.”

“…Even a Fourth terrorist wouldn’t say something like that, you know. And I
am
still a member of the Faust, so I’d prefer that you not declare criminal intent. Frankly, it’s off-putting.”

Only a princess who once cleaved through a castle could declare something so bold. Momo swiftly put some distance between her and Ashuna, lest she be mistaken for a coconspirator.

“Besides, aren’t you a knight, Princess-poo? I thought you were supposed to guard the peace, not smash it.”

“Ha-ha-ha. Think about it, Momo. How could I possibly look at such a bizarre phenomenon and
not
want to investigate it? I still take pride in my excellence as a knight, you know. It’s in my nature to desire to inspect suspicious buildings.”

What had the princess sensed with a mere glance at the holy land? Ashuna gleefully pointed toward the small town and voiced her new pet theory.

“You said the holy land is a barrier, yes? But you realize, Momo, that shields exist to protect something. What could such an enormous barrier be safeguarding? You’re not really going to tell me it’s just there to ‘secure the holy land,’ are you?”

Ashuna preemptively threw aside the Faust’s self-declared cause with a smirk.

Momo hesitated. The holy land was where modern civilization began. It had survived the chaos a thousand years ago that brought the ancient civilization to ruin. And the current societal structure—the holy first caste, the Faust; the royal second caste, the Noblesse; and the plebeian third caste, the Commons—began in the holy land as well.

“That sequence of events is backward. The holy land came before the Faust. It’s only natural to assume this barrier is here to protect something, and the group that became the leaders of the Faust declared it hallowed ground to hide whatever that is,” Momo explained.

So then why had the giant barrier called the holy land been created?

Ashuna, who was known as the world-reforming Princess Knight in her homeland, spoke quickly as her curiosity got the better of her. “Look, its whole existence is suspicious. Nothing sparks my inquisitive spirit like an enigma rooted deep in history. Just what is the Faust hiding?”

“How should I know? I’m at the bottom of the ranks. And I’m not looking to stir up trouble.”

The cathedral at the center was the source of the holy land. It was a highly important area, with less than a hundred priestesses permitted entry. Being transferred into the holy land was proof of being a top-level member of the Faust, but a position inside the cathedral placed you even higher.

No matter how suspicious Ashuna might be, a white-robed assistant Executioner like Momo would never be granted access.

“Well, I’ll be… Sounds like you do have a cowardly side, Momo. How adorable. Want me to hold your hand?”

“Want me to beat you to death?”

Momo shot the princess a murderous glare, and Ashuna breezily dismissed it with a chuckle.

“Well, this so-called holy land sure is an incredible construct.”

“Religion itself is a construct, so what’s the problem?”

Both Ashuna and Momo made remarks that would never come from the mouth of a believer, never mind a priestess. If any devotees had heard this conversation, they might have fainted or gone into a mouth-frothing lecture.

Since the cathedral was itself a conjured barrier, it required no upkeep or maintenance workers. The main gate at the entrance was always closed, leaving no physical way to enter or exit. Since a ceremonial conjuring circle was used to get in and out, it was impossible for anyone to break in.

“It’s intriguing how the architecture of the city is so erratic, too. I don’t know who made the foundation of the barrier, but…there’s no consistent markers of age, so it’s impossible to guess at its history at all.”

“That’s quite an eye for detail you have. The town has been the same since the ancient civilization of a thousand years ago, so it’s honestly stranger to consider it from the perspective of our modern architectural style… Although there is a tall tale that the power of the Lord is what preserves the holy land.”

“I’m sure that story is great for believers and all. However…thinking about it realistically, wouldn’t it make more sense to assume it’s a remnant from the ancient civilization?”

“An ancient relic, you mean? It’s too large for that.”

The term
ancient relic
referred to anything inherited from the fallen civilization that was said to be the peak of human development. Supposedly, this highly advanced culture had reached all the way to the stars and built a structure on the moon. The society had collapsed a millennium ago, so it was rare to find ancient relics in perfect condition.

“It’s common for ancient relics to produce effects we can’t replicate by modern means, correct? With their hyper-advanced technology, it’s not impossible that they gave Guiding Force physical form and used it as a building material, don’t you think?”

“I suppose so. The method has been lost, though. If they used an ancient relic to construct a city and something unexpected happened, there would be no way to save the whole place. Powerful ancient relic or not, I doubt they’d rely on something they couldn’t maintain,” said Momo.

“You have a point. Seems there’s nothing else for it but to tear the thing open and find out how it ticks, then.”

“If you try it, I swear I’ll arrest you, Princess-poo.”

“That sounds like fun, too… I guess this isn’t the kind of mystery we can solve in a day, though. It’d be helpful if there was some way to make the whole holy land disappear…”

“Really, do you
want
me to arrest you?”

Their conversation was all hypothetical, with no right answer to be found. After a moment of gazing at the cathedral with lingering regret, Ashuna reluctantly put her scheming aside.

“So what now? I want to know what we’re doing. Menou wouldn’t tell me, but I’m sure you’ve got all kinds of tricks up your sleeve, right?”

“Tricks? How rude. This is just a homecoming, nothing more.” Why would anyone reveal her plans to someone who wasn’t part of the team or even a friend? Momo coolly ignored the request. “Anyway, Princess-poo, what do you plan to do now that we’re in the holy land? There’s no place to stay, you know.”

“…There’s not?”

Ashuna’s eyes widened in surprise. Although this was the Wild Frontier, people were constantly visiting on pilgrimages. Ashuna couldn’t have anticipated that there were no accommodations.

“No. In fact, there’s nothing much in the holy land at all. The only real activity is staring at it from here.”

“Oh? So if there are no inns or anything, do you intend to camp outside?”

“Of course not. What do you take me for?”

Momo tugged at her outfit pointedly. Even if it was modified to be more fashionable, it was a real white robe, given to assistant priestesses of the Faust. It was a bit dirty all over thanks to the mud bath Ashuna had given her along the way, but it still served perfectly well as proof she was part of the Faust.

“I’ll just stay at some random monastery. None of them would ever refuse lodging to a priestess on a pilgrimage.”

Most monasteries were willing to give wayfarers a place to rest, priestess or not. This was especially true of the monasteries positioned closest to the holy land. Regular people had to give donations, but it was free for Faust members.

“I see. So the fields and such nearby aren’t considered part of the holy land. It’s just the immediate area of the barrier city, eh? …You’re not going to stay at the monastery you come from, Momo?”

“It’s not very convenient, being rather far from the holy land.”

Momo and Menou’s childhood monastery was a training ground for Executioners. Since it kept many secrets, it was positioned far away from the holy land to avoid prying eyes. Momo certainly couldn’t take Ashuna there, so she offered a vague reason to avoid it.

“At any rate, we’re not entering the holy land until tomorrow.”

Momo turned her gaze back toward the shining town.

She was on Menou’s side. No matter what her beloved did, Momo would support her. That was the sole principle behind Momo’s actions.

Menou’s method for infiltrating the holy land without Master Flare noticing left no room for Momo to tag along. Thus, yet again, the assistant Executioner was traveling separately, bound for the same destination.

Momo closed her eyes.

During their strategy meeting, Menou had been in a state that Momo had never seen before. She’d been tense, much more so than she regularly was while they prepared for missions.

It was understandable, considering who they were about to face.

“I just hope she doesn’t do anything too reckless…”

In the back of her mind, Momo pictured the face of the girl who had been walking by Menou’s side lately.

Akari Tokitou. Truth be told, Momo had intended to get rid of that airheaded Otherworlder before Menou wound up poised to betray the Faust.

Unfortunately, Momo was unable to kill Akari or stop Menou.

“…I don’t looove that this winds up being for that idiot’s sake, too.”

“Mm? What was that, Momo?”

“Nothing.” Momo hadn’t intended to vocalize her complaint, and she snapped curtly at Ashuna. Then she began formulating plans in her mind, all for her beloved darling…and one tiny segment for Akari, who had traveled with her.

The heart of the holy land.

From the outside, the cathedral that stood as a symbol of faith wasn’t so different from other churches found throughout the world, aside from the fact that it was much larger and made of conjurings.

The central hall of the nave was long and straight, intersecting with a transept to form the shape of a cross. Past the place of worship that lay beyond the intersection was a steeple, continuing to the semicircular inner sanctum. The front entrance was the sturdiest and most magnificent; the door was easily three stories high, flanked by towers on either side.

In the northern one of the two spires, in a room at the very top, a lone girl stood by a window.

Akari Tokitou, a lost one who had come to this world from Japan.

She was a young woman with a round, childish face and big bright eyes that gave her an endearing expression. Her messy black hair was roughly shoulder-length. In weather such as this, it tended to absorb the humidity and puff up, but a white hairband with a flower decoration held it in place.

Her forlorn air as she gazed out the window made her seem a bit more mature.

“You’d never see a city like this back there. This really is a fantasy world.” Her voice was much lower than usual and bereft of its typical energy.

The words
back there
referred to the world Akari came from.

Even at night, the buildings and streets themselves gave off a glow, far different from the light of the “nightless city” back in Japan. This was a warm, reassuring luminance.

Everything that made up this city emitted Guiding Light, which was wholly dissimilar from any electric, neon glow. The north tower where Akari was being kept was the highest point in the holy land. She could see all the way to the ends of the town.

Down below, the vast majority of people walking the streets wore indigo priestess robes. The alabaster construction of the city made the blue fabric stand out.

Of the rest, most wore the attire of aides or the minister garments of higher-ranked priestesses. Since both were white, they blended into the background.

Fewest by far were those in nuns’ habits or the ordinary garb of pilgrims.

“Still, though…”

Turning her gaze back to the room, Akari raised her index finger.

The light of Guiding Force gathered around the digit’s tip. This power, drawn from a living soul, created a glow called Guiding Light when it amassed, the precursor to any conjuring.

The glimmer convened as Akari focused her mind, but then it scattered without causing any kind of phenomenon.

“Hrmm.”

Akari pursed her lips. She’d run into this result many times.

Akari was a lost one summoned from another world. She could control a power called a Pure Concept, the most potent kind of conjuring in this world. The concept of
Time
, which had adhered to her soul when she was summoned here, had always come to her as naturally as breathing.

Yet since she’d arrived at the cathedral, she couldn’t invoke conjurings properly.

They weren’t completely impossible, but they were challenging to invoke, and their effects were drastically reduced. Before the conjuring activated, she could feel something interfering. The parts she would normally construct subconsciously were interrupted and dispersed.

In short, this made things very difficult.

“What’s going on here?”

Giving up, Akari folded her arms again. This emphasized her already very notable bust, but since she was alone, she paid it no mind as she racked her brain over what stifled her conjurings.

The Pure Concept of
Time
.

Its powers were unique to Akari, as they had dwelled within her soul from the moment she appeared in this world.

Each time she used them, she lost more memories. If it reached the worst-case scenario, there was a danger that she would sacrifice her entire personality and become a wildly destructive Human Error. Although the power of Akari’s conjurings was nothing short of tremendous, they came at a price. The Pure Concept had been her single greatest weapon since she’d been summoned.

So a malfunction in the method that could normally get her out of almost any crisis was immensely worrying to Akari.

“I really wanna find a way to use it…”

“I’d abandon that pointless effort if I were you.”

As Akari flung herself onto the sofa and complained aloud, a voice suddenly responded to her.

There hadn’t been anyone else in the room, however. Akari’s eyes swiveled to the source of the sound.

Near the wall of the simple yet elegantly furnished room, there was a woman. Akari hadn’t heard the door open at all and had no way of determining how long this guest had been present.

The woman had short dark-red hair and stood about a head taller than Akari. Even when she was just standing there motionless, her presence was enough to send a chill down one’s spine.

Master Flare.

A living legend. The Executioner who had killed the most taboos in history. Noticing the unexpected intruder, Akari quickly unfolded her arms and narrowed her eyes.

“Wh-where’d you come from all of a sudden? I don’t know what you want, but could you at least knock before you come into my room?”

“Ah, you’re in puberty, are you? This is why I hate kids.”

“Puber—?! That’s just common courtesy!”